Smiting Season (newb-intermediate, LA, CBM 1.92) smiting has begun!

[Groundworm]

Yep, hosting postponed.

[Groundworm]

Gentlemen, Ladies, and Other Things of the world,

T'ien Ch'i apologizes for casting a spell, designed to stop me, that affects many of us. With the coming of the Kindly Ones, none of our blood mages are safe. Though it is surely a minor nuisance at best, I invite you to consider this action of T'ien Ch'i for what it is: an affront to us all.

My forces, blood and otherwise, will continue to wage war against this self-righteous nation, and I invite you to join me.

Marignon

[Snacktime]

Can I get 24 hour extension? Looks like my wife giving birth today.

May need more time but prob not, will have to see.

Tx and sorry for delay.

[Immaculate]

Good luck Snacktime. Hopefully everything goes very smoothly for mommy and baby.

[Groundworm]

An extension? Because your wife is giving birth? Really?

Well, I suppose I can reluctantly grant that.

Congratulations, man. Hope your new child brings you great joy. :)

[Snacktime]

Hi all - I'm really sorry about my stales. My son was born Monday but needed to go to the NICU and is still in the hospital. He is doing great but it's been a whirlwind and we're still in and out of the hospital.

I actually turned in a turn even still, but apparently it was too late, and since I didn't realize it I staled a second time.

I haven't even looked at the most recent turn file, I don't even know my current position. But I will try to pick it up. However, there may be some sense in grabbing a sub for me. Unfortunately I can't really help with that.

Alternatively my situation should improve in a few days. But I don't know exactly how long.

[mattyburn7]

Cheers Mate and Congrats!! We had a similar situation with our twins 4 years ago. My vote is either put game on hold until you are ready or get a sub...whichever you choose. The moment is too important for you to worry about the game. Of course I'm the new guy. But just my 2 cents.

[Groundworm]

I agree with mattyburn7. You've been a good player and very reliable with turns, and you're definitely welcome to continue in the game if you wish. Unless there are objections, I'm happy to delay the game for a few days if you think that will help. I hesitate to delay for more than 4 or 5 days, though, for fear that the game will lose momentum; I've seen that happen before. If you think you'll need longer than that, it may be best for me to look for a sub.

Or, if you think subbing out would be best, that's also fine.

Whatever you prefer- these are definitely extenuating circumstances, but all for the best. :)

No need to apologize for the stales (it's as much my fault for not noticing), and I hope your son does well.

Let me know what you'd like me to do.

[Groundworm]

I've postponed the turn 24 hours, as I still haven't heard back (understandably) from snacktime. If I don't hear back from him after that, I'll start reluctantly looking for another sub.

[Snacktime]

Hey thanks guys. The great news is our son is coming home tomorrow from the hospital, all looks good. So I should be okay from here. I also sent in the current turn.

Cheers and thanks again.

[Groundworm]

I've extended the turn by 12 hours because Arcoscephale, who staled last turn, still hasn't submitted this one. He also hasn't logged onto the forums in 4 days.

Whollaborg, are you still with us?

[Groundworm]

Still nothing from Arco. Should I start looking for a sub?

[Carpetbagger]

nice to see him still around.

[Groundworm]

Agreed, I'm glad the game can continue as is.

[Snacktime]

Can I get a last-minute six hour extension? Sorry, unexpected baby appointment (he's fine).

[Groundworm]

Yep, turn extended.

[Immaculate]

I'll be away from Sunday afternoon until Wednesday, can i get an extension for that time?

[Groundworm]

Yes, I will extend the next turn to not host until after Wednesday. I seem to be extending the turns an awful lot lately...

[Carpetbagger]

Pythium will soon be defeated and Patala will have both the stone sword and the aegis. Yall lame arse pretenders with heads up their arse can have fun dealing with that! :)

[Immaculate]

Thats not true as anyone who has scouts can tell you. I lost about 3000g and 120 gems in that last engagement. What did you lose? 150g?

[Groundworm]

I postponed the game once again so Agartha won't stall.

[HoleyDooley]

Apologies, having to use internet cafes at preset and thought my turn was in.

HD

[Immaculate]

Carpetbagger,

Was that a misclick?

[Snacktime]

Did Pythium set himself AI? Why is he not listed as one of the nations still in the game by llamaserver?

[Groundworm]

Oh, so that's what Immaculate meant by his last post. I'll PM him, but even if he did, there's nothing we can do. I'd be very reluctant to roll the game back.

[Immaculate]

There's no reason to roll the game back. Or to find a sub. Carpetbagger is an INCREDIBLY good player with MANY tricks and unexpected tactics and strategies but ultimately he had much fewer resources to make use of than i did.

He made a last ditch break-out and it failed. Its mop-up now.

[Immaculate]

I require a 48 hour extension on next turn (turn 66).

[Snacktime]

Can I get a 12-hour extension on this current turn? Given Immaculate's request shouldn't make for more delay.

[Groundworm]

Extensions granted. This was a harsh turn for me anyway, I could use the extra time to plan.

[Snacktime]

Sorry, need some extra time on this turn, maybe even 24 hours. hope groundworm sees this. unexpectedly busy weekend.

[Groundworm]

He saw it. :) Extension granted.

[Groundworm]

Slobby (Gath) PM'ed me that he's out of town, and requested an extension. Turn extended until Wednesday morning.

[Immaculate]

I feel that i am in a position, as we all are, of either acting against Marrignon or watching him win, so i hereby break my NAP with Mary. Hopefully its not too late.

If anyone else feels that their scales build (which includes growth) and substantial armies and gem income, as well as well established blood economy and HUGE dominion are a big threat, i encourage you to join me. Either way, good hunting and have fun.

Immac.

[Groundworm]

Termination of NAP with Patala is noted. But I'll note that Patala is still bigger than I am, with a larger gem income + Maelstrom up, larger armies than mine, and a similarly thriving blood economy with numerous Lanka blood summons. He's also got numerous Grendelkin and artifacts, including the Chalice.

Victory is very much open for grabs at this point, and I fear that siding with Patala at this point may be handing the game to them.

Either way, Immac, looking forward to some excellent fights. :)

[Immaculate]

maelstorm was dispellled.... :(

and no- not larger armies. unless you compare one wolf as being equivalent to one marrignon knight...

but yeah, i think i see how this is going to go vis-a-vis the endgame and i wish i had taken your growth scales.

And i think i waited too long to break the NAP- wasn't sure about some other borders... and now... well, i suspect its too late.

[Immaculate]

please extend 36h.

i.

[Groundworm]

Done.

[Immaculate]

48h turns at turn 73 is WAY too short- turns should be more like 72 or even 96. I request turn extension please.

[Immaculate]

I need a 56h extension. Sorry- work related meetings and a house move.

[Groundworm]

Turn extended, and turns are now 72h.

[Immaculate]

Sorry about all this- its a new job and a new apartment and things are hectic. I really appreciate your patience.

[Immaculate]

OMG Groundworm!!!!!!!!! THATS SO MUCH CAVALRY AND BIG SCs!!!!!!!

Unless you play really stupidly- i think you have this game won.

[Immaculate]

Hey- i realize i am asking for lots of extensions lately and to be honest i am finding it hard to find enough time to fulfill my gaming comittments (largely due to a new job).

I'm also looking to offload some of my gaming commitments and have asked for a sub for either this game or another. Hopefully when that happens either i can focus more on this one game and not keep having to ask for extensions or the new player will have more time than me.

For now though, with business travel tomorrow and again on sunday, things are tough.

Anyway, if you know anyone who might be willing to sub for patala in either this game or the other, check this out:


I'm currently involved in two games where i am playing patala. Turns 64 and 76 approximately. In both games i am leading in territory and have some globals, a good blood economy and many SCs. They are both very fun to play but unfortunately i recently started a new job (well, thats not unfortunate really) and i find myself with much less time than i used to have. I am looking to offload one of these two very enjoyable games to someone who wants to jump in on a late game war.

Here are a few more details:

Game 1: Smiting Season (turn 76): War just beginning with a blood-economy driven Marrignon. Many SCs, good blood economy, good gold economy. Fair but not excellent artifact control. Excellent diversity (every path available pretty much) Control former Man and former Pythium lands as well as a significant portion of formerly neutral lands. Strong contender for the win after Marrignon- so probably first in land and gems but second to Marrignon in everything else. Score graphs are off so its hard to tell exactly.

Game 2: Blood Sacrifice (turn 64): War with Man (who is heavily forted up). A good number of SCs (not as many as smiting). Very good blood economy (under Marrignon's astral corruption so thats good). Very good gold economy. Poor artifact control. Excellent diversity (better than Smiting). Control former Ulm, C'tis, and parts of R'leyh, and Caelum lands. Interesting diplomatic situation where most of the world's nations are at war with Marrignon and on good terms with Patala despite huge territory, good globals and a very strong contention for the win. Only problem is that man is very tough and has won some early skirmishes (lots of tartarians, chalice).


Anyway, if you are interested in either game i can e-mail you the game files and you can choose which you want to take. I would keep playing them both but like i said, my new job is taking a lot of my time and i've had to reduce gaming time.

Thanks for your consideration,
Immac.


Thanks for your understanding. I feel bad for having to reduce my gaming time; i didn't realize i would have to find new employment when i signed up for this game and couldn't have known that my time would be so stretched.

This sure is fun though.

[Groundworm]

Immaculate, I think I liked your comment about your cavalry more than I liked the one about you needing a sub. :)

But, of course, it's understandable- life comes first. I'll delay the game as we try to find a sub for you. If, in the meantime, you are able to play a turn now and then, that would certainly be appreciated.

[Groundworm]

This is very frustrating. I knew I wasn't going to be able to take my turn until later tonight, so I postponed hosting. Llamaserver says that hosting was indeed postponed... only it wasn't. The turn just hosted, and I staled.

Well, hopefully that won't be too devastating, but it sure is annoying.

[Slobby]

Tch, arcane nexus? Ready or not Mari here Gath comes ... NAP cancelled

[Snacktime]

I'm an (extremely) minor player at this point, but what's going on? Are we waiting on a sub for Patala?

[Groundworm]

Partly yes. Patala hasn't had a chance to do his current turn yet, as he's got a lot going on. I've also been pretty busy recently, and haven't had much time to get my turns in (which, by now, take a long time). Thus, I've been postponing hosting. I probably should have said something before now, my apologies.

[Immaculate]

Sorry- i have a report due tomorrow for work and another due for a pharmacology journal. I also had family visiting. I've played my small game turns but the larger ones (this one and another) i was unable to attend to.

i.

[Slobby]

24hr extension please

thanks

[Groundworm]

Extension granted. Sorry for late reply- I'm out of town until tomorrow.

[Groundworm]

A thousand apologies for the length of that turn. Aside from being out of town and having a hectic work schedule, that turn just took forever to plot and script. I did actually take my time to make sure my scripts were sound, and, well... one way or the other, this turn is going to be interesting.

[Immaculate]

I move that we declare GroundWorm the victor. There is no real resistance to his domination.


Is there anyone who really needs to keep playing this or who thinks there is any doubt as to who will win? Playing this out is an exercise in fruitless micromanagement- at least for me. The winner is not in doubt.



Groundworm has certainly played extremely well, and, in my opinion, well earned the victory.



Immac.

[Slobby]

LOL Immac you can't be serious. You're pushing him and he's raiding you slightly and you're caving? What's the net gain/loss in territories for you at this point? Not to mention that this turn that we're about to play right now is the turn that GATH steps into the fray.

Game is not over by a long shot imo.

Plus who knows what squirrely Arco is up to with his no diplo shenanigans lol.

[Immaculate]

I wrote that because he has two armies that i cannot counter. My pushes are against undefended lands. His pushes are right through my armies, destroying them and sending them scatter.

I sort of assumed you weren't playing seriously at this point because Gath hasn't done anything for like 3 turns despite declaring war. Lets see what you can do to stop him.

[Slobby]

[QUOTE=Immaculate;813090] Gath hasn't done anything for like 3 turns despite declaring war./QUOTE]

NAPs gotta run out ;)

[Immaculate]

He broke the nap with arcane nexus.

[HoleyDooley]

How so?

It hasn't affected your gold or gem income has it? Just his.

[Immaculate]

i thought arcane nexus breaks NAPs?

[HoleyDooley]

Well each to their own, but it doesn't hurt other nations at all, unlike Burden of Time etc, thus I don't see how its breaks a NAP.

It obviously is a VERY powerful spell and almost a game winner in its own right, thus people need to really get together to fight the casting nation.

But in my view its not a NAP breaker.

[Slobby]

Pretty much what HD said - tho even if someone put up BoT or UD, even then I'd stick to the terms of the NAP.

[Groundworm]

I agree with HD and Slobby- there's some question that casting a global that affects other nations (BoT, Utterdark, Arcane Corruption) could be interpreted as a sign of aggression and invalidates NAPs, but I'd argue against that. Also, where then does one draw the line? Does the Kindly Ones constitute breach of NAP if you're fighting against blood nations? Second Sun? Purgatory against undead nations if you have a strong dominion?

I appreciate you adhering to our nap, Slobby. And I agree with you- I don't think I've won this game hands down. In fact, I think I may be in for an uphill battle against both Patala and Gath. Neither of you are weak.

[Groundworm]

I don't understand what happened. I saw that most of us had not submitted our last turn, so I delayed hosting. Llamaserver confirmed the delay in hosting... then it hosted anyway.

A rollback is always a questionable thing to do. Since most of us staled anyway, it shouldn't affect things too much. I suggest we continue playing as is. But I still don't know why that happened.

[Immaculate]

I got this turn in but i need to go from the 16th to the 27th. Feel free to grab a sub if you can. I asked around on gamechat and came up empty for this game. Otherwise pause? If you want you can force stales- i am not super worried that that would be worse than what i can do anyway.

I.

[Groundworm]

Finding a sub has proven difficult for this game, so we'll have to play it out. I know things have been difficult time-wise for you, Immaculate, and I appreciate you sticking with it.

I'll turn quickhost off for the next turn and extend the timer.

[Immaculate]

They are actually getting a bit better. I DO appreciate your kind words.

[Slobby]

Time to call it? With Patala AI and Marignon staling over and over, I'm the only super power left. While it's amusing to gobble up the two I think it's safe to say that Gath wins.

[Groundworm]

Agreed, Slobby, I'll put an end to the game. Congrats on having the huge armies (and the dedication) to bring Gath to victory. Well played!

[Whollaborg]

I am sorry to have stalled couple of last turns. It could have been interesting to clash with Gath. Congratulations to Slobby for win thou!

[Slobby]

Thanks! Yeah it would have been fun to pit my swarms against you Wholla. Technically this is my first win, but it doesnt really feel like one. I beat shard and batman, but thats really it. Everyone else just got occupied with rl and gave up. :(